How to choose right health insurance

1
Health Insurance

• How to Choose a Right Health Insurance

2
Deciding to buy health insurance is crucial, so
is the choice of the most suitable plan. With so
many options available in the market, you are
bound to get confused. Check out what the policy
includes before you decide to buy. Make sure that
you are aware of all terms and conditions. You
will realise that price is not the only criterion
when it comes to Health InsuranceBroadly
speaking every health insurance policy covers the
cost of hospitalisation and related costs of
diagnostics, consultancy, tests etc. Assuming
they all are the same, and opt for the cheapest
plan might not be right when it comes to health
insurance claims. Coverage, terms, cost and
expenditure limits may vary for each company.
Although it is important to consider the premium
and check the affordability factor, a run through
of features is what should ideally determine the
final selection.Coverage, terms, cost and
expenditure limits may vary for each
company.First step in the direction is to
determine the coverage amount that you need.
Weigh your needs see what you can spare for
emergencies. Determine who all are to be covered
in the plan. Once you have these things in place,
you need to compare the best available options.
Comparing different plans available in the market
will educate you as to what various companies are
offering and as well as help you identify your
needs.
3
What to look for and compare?

• There are certain must confirm points while
  buying health insurance. Check these points out
  when searching and comparing.
• See till what age the policy will cover you
• Most health insurance companies in India cover
  you till you reach a certain age. After this age
  the cover ceases to exist. Besides this, there is
  also a maximum entry age for getting a new health
  insurance plan. No insurance company will accept
  your proposal if you have crossed the maximum
  entry age. Maximum covered up to age may vary.
  Some companies even offer lifetime coverage.
• Note the Policy Sub-Limits
• Health insurance policies cover hospitalization
  charges, consultancy fees, diagnostic tests,
  medication, room rent, ambulance cost etc. But
  each part may have sub-limits for reimbursements.
  These sub limits may be fixed amounts or
  percentage of the total sum assured. It is
  important to consider the sub-limits in light of
  place of your residence and the kind of hospitals
  you visit.
• Find out what is not covered
• There are certain medical conditions, treatments
  and consultancies not covered in the policy. They
  may be permanently excluded or they may have time
  bound limitations. Like maternity and pregnancy
  related treatments may not be covered at all but
  ailments like hernia or cataract surgery may not
  be covered only during the first year of the
  insurance. Identify these and compare different
  policies to see which one suits your requirements
  most.

4

• Check the waiting periods
• Any health insurance policy comes into force
  after a minimum of 30 days waiting period. Till
  then only accident related medical conditions are
  covered. For some companies the waiting period
  may be even more. Besides this initial wait,
  there are certain illnesses that are not covered
  during the first or first two years of the
  policy. You may have to wait for up to 4 years
  for any pre-existing illness to be covered,
  depending upon the insurance company. Check what
  the waiting period is for various situations.
• Search information about the Networked Hospitals
• Networked hospitals that offer the cashless
  facility form an important feature of a health
  insurance plan. They prove to be very convenient
  while dealing with the medical emergencies.
  Although generally you get the list of networked
  hospitals when you buy the policy, you can ask
  the company for the list before that or even
  check online on their website. Make sure that
  some of the hospitals near to you residence are
  covered by the insurance company.
• Verify if there are any loading charges
• Most insurance companies offer No Claim Bonus at
  the time of renewal if there is no claim in the
  previous year. Thats a monetary benefit that you
  get. But, what if you had made a claim? Insurance
  companies implement loading charges. Make sure
  that your health insurance provider has a clear
  and defined loading policy or you may end up
  paying heavy premiums.

5
How to compare?

• When you begin the search you must get a neutral
  and objective view of different health insurance
  policies available in the market. You can go to
  various companies websites and look for
  information about their products or call their
  agent advisors to explain things this would be
  tedious and time consuming and certainly not
  objective enough. Even if you have all the
  information, it will be difficult to compare
  them.
• Theres an easier way out that has emerged these
  days and is becoming popular too. It is to go to
  insurance comparison websites like
  Easypolicy.com, Policy Tiger, Bima Deals etc. and
  compare. Most chances are that you will get a
  general but unbiased comparison of features and
  premiums.. Some of these websites also offer
  offline service support and also the facility to
  purchase insurance online.
• Finally, read through the fine-print of the
  shortlisted products. Tedious, but very important
  as this will decide how you will get the benefit
  of the insurance in an emergency situation.

6
Thank You